


Now Comes the Night

by Allerleirauh



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Bechdel Test Pass, Canonical Character Death, Community: rarewomen, Friendship, Gen, Retrospective, Women Being Awesome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-21
Updated: 2013-04-21
Packaged: 2017-12-09 02:05:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/768707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Allerleirauh/pseuds/Allerleirauh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A look at the friendship between Kira Nerys and Tora Ziyal.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Now Comes the Night

**Author's Note:**

  * For [karrenia_rune](https://archiveofourown.org/users/karrenia_rune/gifts).



> I have to admit I’ve always been a bit disappointed about the way the character of Tora Ziyal was handled in the series — the poor writing, the exchange of actresses — it made me cringe on a regular basis.
> 
> This lovely assignment, however, gave me the opportunity to look past all that and try to discover everything I like about the character and also what could have been.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. :D
> 
> betaed by aphrodite_mine - thank you!

**Settling In**

“I know it isn’t much,” Kira said apologetically, as she walked inside the small quarters located in Deep Space Nine’s inner habitat ring. Even procuring something as small as these had been difficult, yet she felt slightly embarrassed and turning hastily at the sound of Ziyal’s footsteps behind her, she tried to gauge Ziyal’s reaction to the more than sparse accommodations.

Ziyal looked almost wary at first, but her expression quickly changed to open delight, her first tentative steps into the room changing to much bolder ones as she came towards Kira, and briefly stopped in front of her, before quickly moving to the large ellipsoid window. For a moment she seemed engrossed by the view it offered of the station and the surrounding space, but then she whirled around abruptly, giving Kira a dazzling smile.

“This is perfect!” she exclaimed. Stepping away from the window again, she rushed up to Kira and grabbed both her hands. Ziyal’s look all but begged for permission and at Kira’s answering smile she found herself tightly hugged as Ziyal whispered in her ear, “It’s a place I have for myself. Thank you, Nerys, thank you very much!” Quickly she let go and taking a half step back, she stared at Kira with a look so full of youthful and unbridled exuberance that Kira couldn’t help but laugh in response.

“Come on,” she said finally. “Let’s take a quick tour round the station, just the basics so that you won’t get lost when you’re on your own, and then I think it’s time for dinner.” She took a step towards the quarters’ entrance holding out her hand.

Without so much as a second’s hesitation Ziyal came to her, taking it and Kira laughed again.

Her offer to take Dukat’s daughter under her wing had been impulsive, but looking at the young woman at her side, she felt grateful for her own impulsiveness. This would work, she was sure of it and she looked forward to spending more time with Ziyal.

 

**Innocence and Ignorance**

“Oh Ziyal, you can’t possibly be so naïve!” Kira exclaimed.

Ziyal stood in front of her, staring at her with a puzzled frown. “I don’t see why it’s so inexcusable that I enjoy his company,” she replied.

“Oh Prophets, help me. Where should I start? How about the fact that he’s a sworn enemy of your father? How about the fact that he’s absolutely not trustworthy? How about the fact that he’s a killer? Do you need me to continue?” Kira stared at Ziyal, watching the girl’s face closely to see if Kira’s words had any impact at all. Their discussion about this subject had been going on for a while now and she was fast losing her patience.

“He won’t cause me any harm.” Ziyal made the statement with utter conviction.

Kira sighed. How ignorant could the girl be? She realized she was fast losing patience, but yelling at Ziyal wouldn’t do any good. Taking a deep breath, she tried to come up with a new angle. “Maybe I should introduce you to some other people on the station. You know, people your own age, perhaps.”

For a moment, Ziyal looked at her silently, as if she had trouble understanding Kira’s suggestion. Then her expression softened. “I would like that. Really, Nerys, I would like that very much. But please don’t expect that I’m going to give up sharing an occasional lunch with Garak because of it.” Her tone of voice turned almost pleading. “Wether you like it or not, he is as much part of my heritage as _you_ are, and I can’t give up on _that_ connection just like I would never consider giving up on you.” She reached out, taking hold of Kira’s hands, grasping them between her own. “To be whole I need both. Please, don’t try to take that away from me.”

Kira lowered her gaze to their entwined hands. However much she wanted to, there wasn’t much she could say to that. She would resign herself to being vigilant and just hope that everything would turn out alright.

 

**A Light in the Dark**

The candle flame was her only focus of attention. Standing in front of the altar inside the Bajoran temple, alone and silent as she had been every year, she was concentrating on this solitary source of light in the otherwise darkened room.

She had come here to remember, to pay her respect and to give testimony. She had chosen the middle of the night, because she preferred doing so alone, unnoticed and undisturbed by the presence and curiosity of others.

Therefore the light footsteps behind her were an unpleasant surprise. Someone was standing in the shrine’s entrance. Someone was looking at her and she hoped that whoever they were, they would respect her need for privacy and leave.

Her hope lasted only for a few seconds, however. Soon the sound of footsteps could be heard again and now they were drawing nearer and with each soft footfall Kira’s irritation rose. She was just about to turn, intent on giving the intruder an unequivocal piece of her mind, when she was pre-empted by a soft voice.

“Nerys?” It was Ziyal, who spoke her name and caused her to turn around. It took her no more than one look at the young woman’s face to allow all her irritation to disappear. Seeing the pensive expression on Ziyal’s face and the candle she was nervously twirling between her hands was all it took Kira to guess at her young protégées intentions.

“Do you want to join me in remembrance?” she asked. At Ziyal’s shy nod, she made a welcoming gesture towards the small altar and watched as the young woman slowly stepped closer. Raising her own candle she brought its wick close to the one Kira had enlightened not so long ago. Once her own candle was burning with a bright and steady flame, Ziyal placed it in a free branch of the candle-tree that stood in the altar’s centre. Then she turned and her expression grew once again hesitant as if she wasn’t completely sure of Kira’s welcoming of her presence.

Kira smiled reassuringly, motioning her to step back and beside her. For years it had been her practise to remember her mother alone. Meru, whom she had first remembered as a hero, briefly as a collaborator, only to finally learn a hard lesson about the inner strength it must have taken her to walk the path her mother had taken.

For years she had performed this night of remembrance on her own, but looking at the young woman standing at her side, she could accept that it might be the right time to share this, and who would be better company than Ziyal.

 

**Suffering**

“Are you sure?” Kira asked, her gaze fixed on Bashir’s face, taking in his worried expression, the downturned corners of his mouth, his furrowed brows.

“I’m sorry, Major. I wish I could give you a different diagnosis, but it’s most definitely Okett’s disease.”

As if to emphasize his words they could both hear Ziyal coughing, then the sounds of her laboured breathing afterwards.

She couldn’t believe this was happening. “But she’s half-Cardassian! Shouldn’t she be immune to this? After all it only affects Bajoran children,” she exclaimed, her voice rising. She flinched when Bashir tried to put a hand at her elbow, pulling it free of his grasp. She didn’t want to be soothed, dammit! Not when there was a slim but very real possibility that Ziyal wouldn’t survive.

Kira turned away from him. She wanted to join Ziyal as she lay there on one of the infirmary’s bio-beds. Ziyal needed her now, needed her more than ever.

Once again it was Bashir’s hand at her elbow that stopped her. This time he was more insistent, tightening his grip when she tried to free herself again. After a brief hesitation she gave in to him, just too tired to fight against his usual eagerness. If he was so keen to tell her something, she would just let him and be done with it. She allowed herself to be drawn further away towards a quiet corner of the infirmary.

Bashir stared at her intently for a second. When he spoke it was in a lowered voice that was nothing more than a hushed murmur. “Major, I have already placed a request with the Bajoran Medical Institute, asking for a search for a suitable bone marrow transplant,” he began, throwing an almost furtive glance across the infirmary.

Kira couldn’t understand why he would make such a drama out of this. After all it was standard procedure when a case of Okett’s was diagnosed these days. Finding a suitable donor for a bone marrow transplant was still the only reliable cure for an otherwise lethal disease, and even when a donor was found, it was entirely possible that there still would be repercussions. Often a limited lung capacity would stay behind as an after effect. Sometimes no donor could be found. She knew all this. She really didn’t need to be told.

Her face must have shown her impatience about Bashir’s roundabout demeanour, because the doctor once again touched her elbow and leaned even closer, before he practically whispered, “It didn’t take more than an hour until I was informed that there was — regrettably as they said — no suitable donor available.”

It took Kira a moment to process the information Bashir was giving her. Yet, interpreting his strange behaviour in light of it, and arriving at a conclusion what he was inferring to, took her no more than a second.

“They wouldn’t!” she exclaimed, making no attempt to keep her voice as low as his. She saw him wince as her words rang out through the infirmary, causing quite a few heads to turn in their direction.

“The medical data I had to pass on with the request for a donor makes her half-Cardassian heritage quite clear, I’m afraid,” he replied, looking at Kira with eyes full of anxiety and embarrassment.

Kira didn’t know how to respond. For a moment she closed her eyes, taking a series of deep breathes to calm herself. This was totally unacceptable, and she would do whatever it took to save Ziyal’s life. The ironic thing about it was that she never would have thought it might fall to her teaching her fellow Bajorans a lesson about not judging one Cardassian for the deeds of her people, but she had no qualms doing so if it was necessary.

Opening her eyes, she gave Bashir a grim smile. “Don’t worry, Doctor. I think it’s time I made a trip to Bajor, and you can be sure of it, I’ll find you a donor.”  

 

**Blossom**

“Peldor joi!” Ziyal’s merry voice rang out behind her.

Kira had just been about to enter the turbolift. Now she turned and, seeing the look of unbridled joy on Ziyal’s face, she smiled back at her. “And peldor joi to you, too,” she answered. “It’s good to see you in such a fine mood, Ziyal.”

Ziyal grinned widely. It made her seem at least five years younger, much more like a teenage girl than the young woman she was. The carefree look suited her, Kira thought, even if it was also a somewhat bittersweet reminder of her own youth, bringing back a wealth of memories, not all of them pleasant.

“I have to check in with Ops this morning, but I thought I’ll pay a short visit to the promenade beforehand — just to take a first stroll and catch a bit of the atmosphere. Care to join me?” she asked, stretching out her hand invitingly. During the last months the gesture had turned almost into a ritual or some form of secret signal between them, and Kira always enjoyed making the invitation as much as Ziyal loved to take her up on it. It was a sure promise of having a good time in each other’s company. Sometimes it almost felt to Kira as if she was granted the younger sister now, she had sometimes longed for as a child.

“So, have you written something down on your renewal scroll?” she asked, as the two of them stepped into the turbolift.

As if she had only waited for the question, Ziyal whipped out a tightly rolled scroll of paper. The smile she gave Kira was possibly the most mischievous Kira had ever seen.

Kira had given her the scroll only yesterday. Now she laughed at the sight. “You’re holding it like a trophy,” she exclaimed.

“Do I? Well maybe it is,” Ziyal answered, her expression suddenly turning thoughtful. “Once you had explained the festival and the role the scrolls play during it to me, their significance have felt quite overwhelming to me.”

Kira could imagine Ziyal’s troubles with the idea. Certainly she had enough reasons to worry, both in her past and present. Closing the small distance between them, Kira laid her hand on Ziyal’s shoulder. She wanted to express her sympathy, but then her look fell on the scroll in Ziyal’s hand and she remembered the mischievous smile. “But you wrote down something, you finally made a choice,” she said instead. She felt very curious now and she wondered if Ziyal would tell her. One look at Ziyal’s face and she knew her curiosity wouldn’t be fulfilled.

Cocking her head to the side Ziyal gave her a coquettish look and another wide smile. “Yes I did. I suddenly realized that it doesn’t have to be my _own_ worries, and so I’ve written a scroll for all of us.” Her look went to the turbolift’s ceiling.

It made Kira wonder whom exactly she meant. Was she talking of DS9 and its people, or Bajor, or Cardassia? Possibly she was talking about all of them. To write a scroll for Cardassia and Bajor alike — as surprising and utterly outlandish the idea felt, it was completely unsurprising that it was Ziyal who would come up with it.

Slinging her arm around Ziyal’s shoulder, Kira pulled her close and asked, “I’m not sure if I mentioned it lately, but are you aware, how much you manage to impress me every once in a while?”

The returning smile was blinding.

 

**Decline**

Sharing a meal in the replimat was a rare event these days.

Kira watched her young protégé closely, taking in every expression and gesture, wanting to be sure that Ziyal was alright, or at least as alright as the current situation allowed, while she listened only half-heartedly to the young woman’s words.

Since Ziyal had returned to DS9, spending time together had become increasingly difficult. With the Federation gone and the Cardassians and the Dominion back in control of Terok Nor it seemed as if a shadow had fallen over their relationship. She even could place at least one name on that shadow — Dukat. Like a vulture he seemed to be inevitably present whenever Kira was trying to spend some time with Ziyal, and when he wasn’t there, he was prone to appear within such a short time, it was clear that someone had notified him, most likely Damar.

Apart from Dukat and apart from Kira’s own misgivings with the status quo, she had noticed how much of a strain the continuous balancing act Ziyal tried to perform was putting on her.

Kira had seen no other way but to carefully withdraw, even if she knew that Ziyal was surely going to notice — and of course she had, though she hadn’t commented on it.

Forcing Ziyal to choose was something Kira didn’t even want to contemplate. It would be such a cruel thing to do and Ziyal had definitely experienced enough cruelty in her life. Yet, with every passing day and with the threat of the dismantlement of the wormhole’s minefield hanging over their heads, it felt as if all too soon, Kira wouldn’t have a choice but to force a decision upon her. She wondered what doing that would mean for the two of them. She wondered what it would do to their friendship. Deep down she was afraid it could very well mark the beginning of the end.

 

**Aftermath**

Ziyal’s funeral was a private ceremony, attended only by few. It was beautiful and serene and sad. Towards the end a bit of rain fell. _Tears of the Prophets_ , Kira thought. Raising her face to the sky she let the drops mingle with her own tears. This was her family’s land, a place where most of her ancestors and relatives had been laid to rest. It had felt right to bring Ziyal here, even though she was neither, not by traditional views at least.

Over the years Kira’s own views had widened, however. Tonight she would mourn for Ziyal. She would perform the chant of remembrance and she would offer her gratitude to the Prophets. She felt privileged in having met this young woman, if only for so brief a time. Ziyal’s path had been a short one, walked in darkness and alone for far too long, yet she had walked it with grace and joy and with an open heart.


End file.
